Explanations by Master Cheng-Yan
Subject: Enter the Supreme Wisdom and Attain Buddhahood (入無上慧 成就佛身)
Date: February.28.2019
“We must practice the path that we know and increase our virtues by practicing the path. Because we practice and learn the great and direct Bodhi-path of the One Vehicle, we will completely eliminate the fundamental afflictions, ignorance and delusions of thinking. We will comprehend the great path, enter the sutra treasury and deliver sentient beings.”
Dear Bodhisattvas, we must be mindful! We must mindfully seek to experience this. The word “sutra” means “a [vertical] warp.” In the Buddha’s wisdom, He revealed the principles that have always existed. In terms of the vertical direction [of time], infinite asankyas of kalpas ago, the Buddha began by analyzing the principles that have always existed so we would know that the principles are everlasting and that everyone intrinsically possesses Buddha-nature. He hoped that we could understand these with great clarity and have deep faith in these principles. We must earnestly have deep faith [in them]. In the Chapter on the Tathagata’s Lifespan, [the Buddha] put great emphasis on the fact that the Buddha’s lifespan is long. In truth, He wished to tell us that [His] enlightened nature [lasts] for a long time. This is the truest principle. [He] came to this world as a human for the duration of a human life; He accorded to sentient beings’ way of life and followed the natural laws of this lifespan.
However, the Buddha’s true lifespan [spans over] countless kalpas. From Beginningless Time, it has been like a warp [running throughout time]; it has no beginning. If we think about this in terms of time, there is no way to determine the origin of the principles. We constantly talk about how [this time] is incalculable. There is no way to calculate the time. And when it comes to “vastness,” when it comes to their breadth and quantity, it is very difficult to describe it even in terms of the sands of the Ganges River. This is meant to tell us that across both space and time, the principles are universal and everlasting; they have always existed. They are the nature of enlightenment, which has always [existed]. But now, sentient beings, and in particular we ourselves, all wonder, “Since the principles and Buddha-nature that we intrinsically possess are everlasting, why are we unable to understand what it is we try to cultivate? Why is it that when we try to understand the principles, we cannot do so clearly? Why is it that we have so many afflictions from people, matters and things around us?”
Let us consider this. We have listened to many teachings, yet we still have severe obstacles. This is because our cultivation is not yet good enough. This is very common. If we continuously listen [to the Dharma], we will clearly comprehend it. Since Beginningless Time, the Buddha formed an aspiration and gave rise to joy as He listened to the Dharma. He comprehended and awakened to the Great Vehicle Dharma, the True Dharma of the One Vehicle. He gave rise to delight in pursuing the Dharma and listened to, contemplated and practiced it. In Great Unhindered Wisdom Superior Buddha’s time, as He listened to the Dharma, He engraved it into His mind and also expounded it [to others]. He clearly understood the principles, took them to heart and could immediately expound the Lotus Sutra for everyone. Thus, the 16 princes each understood and realized their true nature. Each of them made great vows to continuously dedicate [themselves] in all places they have affinities with and in all directions, to widely transform sentient beings. With His great aspirations and vows, Sakyamuni Buddha was willing to be in this Saha World, in the realm with such stubborn sentient beings, and dedicate Himself here. [The Buddha] repeatedly returned. We have no way of calculating how many times. He came to the world journeying upon the power of vows to transform sentient beings. The number is like the sands of the Ganges River; it is countless. From this, we can see that the period of time was very long. What about us unenlightened beings? When did we begin to listen to the Buddha expound the Dharma? In which lifetime did we form affinities with Sakyamuni Buddha? Furthermore, at what point will we finally be able to discover such principles? When we listen, have we absorbed what we heard? How much have we understood? In this life, we still have the affinities to come to the human world, encounter the Buddha-Dharma and listen to it. How long will this time last? How much of what we listen to will we retain? Are we sincerely reverent? Do we possess deep faith? Are we earnest? Have we put [the Dharma] into practice? We must ask ourselves questions like these.
This was the Buddha’s experience; He traveled upon such a long path. But what about us? How can we compare with the Buddha? What the Buddha awakened to and what we currently understand are obviously extremely different. So, now, we must “practice what we know.” While we know, have we formed aspirations? We have! We have begun to form aspirations, aspiration to “practice what we know.” We must put however much we know into practice. As we walk on this path, how much have we cultivated [ourselves]? We already know the direction of the Buddha’s path and have formed aspirations. We have cleared the path, [begun] to work hard and begun to [practice toward] this direction. We have worked hard to clear the path in this direction. How far have we cleared [this path]? We do not know how far we have cleared [it]. As we interact with people and deal with things, through our cultivation and actions, how much progress have we made? In terms of our inner cultivation, in our hearts, how much have we comprehended? When serving others, do we still harbor attachments in our service? If we serve others with attachments, we still have some afflictions. If we serve others without attachments, we feel great joy afterward. This is being “full of Dharma-joy.” We hear this Dharma and practice this Dharma. In the world, in return [for our practice], we become full of Dharma-joy. In this way, we can examine ourselves; after listening to the Dharma, have we put it into practice? When we put it into practice, are we full Dharma-joy? If this is the case, then we will know “the path that we know” and will “increase our virtues by practicing the path.” We know this path and we have cleared it, but how far have we traveled on it? When it comes to our aspirations to understand this great path, how great are the aspirations we have formed? After we delve deeply into the sutra treasury, have we gone among people? As we go among people, are we leading them harmoniously? Are we in harmony with others?
These are from the Three Refuges. Have we achieved these things? These words from the Three Refuges are not just for ceremonies of taking refuge, but are meant to remind us to be vigilant. Every day, every moment, in every step, we must form the supreme aspiration to enter the Buddha’s sutra treasury and lead the people harmoniously. This is what we must put into practice.
How much have we “increased our virtues by practicing the path”? How much understanding have we gained? We can contemplate and consider this; we can measure it and comprehend it. “We practice and learn the great and direct Bodhi-path of the One Vehicle.” We must know to reflect upon ourselves and engage in deep contemplation about this. We must engage in deep contemplation and examine ourselves.
Among people, are we able to find a way to interact harmoniously with others and encourage each other? Do we work in concert with unity, harmony and love and encourage each other to increase our virtues? In our place of practice, how can we practice and open [the path]? This is something we must earnestly consider; we must earnestly consider this. So, we must “practice and learn the great and direct Bodhi-path of the One Vehicle.” This path is very straight; it should be easy to walk on. As long as we are willing to form great aspirations and walk the Bodhisattva-path, this path will be smooth and flat. As long as we have patience and the power of vows, our path will be very straight. “We will completely eliminate the fundamental afflictions, ignorance and delusions of thinking.”
The fundamental afflictions are greed, anger, ignorance, arrogance and doubt. These are the Five Turbidities of our spirit and also the Five Poisons of our wisdom-life. Thus, we must be mindful! These five things can destroy our wisdom-life; they are greed, anger, ignorance, arrogance and doubt. “To doubt” is to have no faith. People cannot be devoid of faith. If we have no faith, this is just like a cart that has no handle to pull it; there is no way to pull the cart along. The principle is the same. If a person does not have faith, we have no way to advance on the path.
Similarly, for us to walk on this path, we must also have wisdom. To have wisdom is to eliminate “ignorance” and eliminate “doubts”. Only when we have eliminated our doubts can we be firm in our resolve. So, we must also be very careful of “arrogance” and “doubt”.
Although we usually speak of greed, anger and ignorance, in truth, arrogance and doubt are the biggest obstacles on the path to enlightenment. We must humbly accept the Dharma; we must always open the door to our hearts and earnestly take in the teachings. If we are arrogant, if we are haughty and arrogant, then how can we be willing to accept the Dharma? So, in order for our wisdom-life to grow greater, we must have firm resolve. Take for example our large group of volunteers from several countries in Africa. We heard [about them] from the Bodhisattvas in our Mission of Humanistic Culture who came to report on the mission. In [their report], there was a video [showing] how diligent the Bodhisattvas from Africa are. They listen to the Dharma very earnestly. Listening to the Dharma is very difficult for them because they live far away [from their service center]. At specific times, they come to the service center to listen to the Dharma. Some people have to transfer buses three times, but they still come to listen to the sutra lectures every time. This is not easy at all. Seeing how the local people seek the Dharma, we asked them “You do not understand Taiwanese; why are you so earnest [in coming]?” They responded, “I have faith; I have faith in Master Cheng Yen. If you do not understand, how can you have faith? I just have faith!” With faith alone, they overcome many, many hardships. They go to [the service center] for the sole purpose of listening to the Dharma, of watching [the Dharma talk] on television. We continued to ask them, “You cannot understand Taiwanese, so why do you have so much faith?” [They responded], “I just believe in it”. They could not give an explanation, but they believed whole-heartedly and were joyful. They felt, “Coming here to listen [to the Dharma] helps me and is good for me. But you cannot understand [the language]. [Still], I have faith”. They continued on back and forth like this. [The local volunteers] simply have faith. Even though they cannot understand [the words], they feel, “When I listen, it’s good for me”. It is [as simple] as that. So is it actually beneficial to them? For them to listen and take the Dharma to heart, [the teachings] have to be translated over and over again a total of four times. In the process of translation, [some meanings] may change, yet whatever they are able to take in is very important. So, they absorb [the teachings]; as they listen earnestly, they take the True Dharma to heart. Because they listen to the Dharma with sincerity, when it comes to what they take in, no matter how much the translation has altered it, what they take in is True Dharma. Thus, what they put into practice is “true diligence”. As they serve others, even though they lack resources, they are willing to give however little they have. We asked, “You have so little, yet you give even this tiny amount to others”. They replied, “Even though I am poor, if I can give of what little I have, as I give to others, I attain blessings. I believe that I must create more blessings”. They only have very little. Normally, people would [say] “I have enough to eat one more meal”. [But they think], “I am willing to save this food and give it to those who are less fortunate than I am to eat”. Such sincere reverence and purity is truly moving. What it there for us to worry about in this kind of world? In [these African Bodhisattvas’] lives, they have no worries at all; when they listen to the Dharma, they completely eliminate these worries. Every day, they are full of Dharma-joy and are willing to serve others, to help others with their strength and energy and share what little they have. They do not worry that after giving away these thing, they would go hungry for a meal; they are not worried about it. This truly is “completely eliminating the fundamental afflictions” and being free from greed, anger and ignorance.
They have completely eliminated “the fundamental afflictions, ignorance and delusions of thinking”. It is not too difficult to eliminate afflictions; it is very simple. They have few desires, they are content, and they have very pure hearts. They have faith and are entirely free of doubt. They accept [the Dharma] in this way; this is truly moving. Because of this, they “comprehend the great path, enter the sutra treasury and deliver sentient beings”. They have faith; even after three to four layers of translations and alterations with [each layer], they listen sincerely. They listen to the True Dharma taking every sentence to heart. They solely rely upon “faith”, [thinking], “I have faith that listening to the Dharma is beneficial to me, that it will help me change my life”. They [also] created a song that went, “Master, how did you find me?” It was something like this; they felt as if they were in such a dark place, so how was I able to find them? Anyways, they repeated these lyrics in this way over and over again. They listen and take in the Dharma. “When I eat, being 80 percent full is enough. With the other 20 percent, I can help others”. They made this into a song too. They are really endearing and pure of heart! They have taken the True Dharma to heart. Everyone, I hope that you are all very mindful. At this point, the Chapter on the Tathagata’s Lifespan is coming to an end. We must know that time passes very quickly. We have already gone through more than half of the Lotus Sutra. How much [of these teachings] have we absorbed? Everyone, please always be mindful!
In the previous sutra passage, [the Buddha] stated, “I too am like a father to the world. I save those who are suffering and afflicted. Since unenlightened beings have inverted views, I tell them that I will enter Parinirvana even though I actually remain here. This is because if they saw me constantly they would become arrogant and unrestrained. Indulgent and attached to the Five Desires, they would fall into the evil realms”.
Indeed! The Buddha lamented greatly. He said, “I too am like a father to the world”. He takes sentient beings as His own children. As “the guiding teacher of the Three Beings, the Buddha, in His compassion, takes the people of the world, all sentient beings, as His children. He sincerely gives of himself in this way. Yet sentient beings are still sentient beings, and unenlightened beings still [suffering from] unenlightened beings’ inverted views. He constantly hopes to relieve them of suffering and free their hearts from ignorance and afflictions. However, there are still many sentient being with ignorance and afflictions. [In response to] these delusion and afflictions, He has to devise methods. This is just like the father who provides his children with medicine. Only after he leaves home does [someone] tell them “Your father will never return again. The medicine he has prescribed is here. If you are suffering from illness, you must take it!” [The father] uses skillful means like this. Similarly, the Buddha knows, that for sentient beings, if He always abides in the world, sentient beings will not know to cherish Him. Thus, the Buddha has no choice but to devise skillful means. “Actually remain here” refers to how the Dharma is always here. Yet the Buddha said, “I will soon enter Parinirvana”, thereby devising this skillful means. This is what “actually remain here” refers to. The Dharma actually remains here, and so do the Dharmakaya and His lifespan. However, His Nirmanakaya will enter Parinirvana, so He spoke of entering Parinirvana. He used this [method] for sentient beings to know that, “If you do not earnestly seize the opportunity, then you will not be able to see the Dharmakaya”. This helps everyone give rise to the thought that [the Dharma] is rare to encounter so that they will know to cherish it. “If they saw me constantly,” they would become arrogant, unrestrained and dependent. They would develop a sense of dependence. To keep people from becoming dependent, He told them, “You must no longer rely upon your father. He has left and will never return again.” This helps them know to become independent. Without someone for them to rely on, they become independent. In this way, they will never again be “indulgent and attached to the Five Desires”. They can reflect and gain awareness and can avoid creating bad karma again and falling into the evil destinies. The Buddha wanted to awaken the children so that they could become alert and inspired to earnestly advance with diligence.
So, continuing on, the next sutra passage states, “I always know whether sentient beings practice the path or not. According to what is suitable to deliver them, I teach them all kinds of Dharma. I always have this thought, “What can I use to help sentient beings enter supreme wisdom and swiftly attain Buddhahood?”
This sutra passage is very simple, so we can understand it clearly. The Buddha devised these skillful means; in fact, the Buddha said, I always know whether sentient beings practice the path or not. The Buddha understands sentient beings; He understand sentient beings’ thoughts. Some people diligently practice the path; others become lax and remain stuck. The Buddha understands this very well. “According to what is suitable to deliver them, I teach them all kinds of Dharma.”
According to what is suitable to deliver them, I teach them all kinds of Dharma: He observes people’s capabilities and teaches accordingly, like a doctor prescribing medicine. According to the Dharma that can transform them, He then teaches them, leading them to attain joy.
Whether or not sentient beings ae being diligent is something the Buddha clearly understands. So, in dealing with sentient beings, the Buddha observes [their] capabilities and teaches accordingly. Thus, this [passage] states, “He observes people’s capabilities and teaches accordingly, like a doctor prescribing medicine.” Looking at what illnesses people have, He prescribes medicine accordingly. “According to the Dharma that can transform them, depending on their capabilities, the Buddha employs teachings to suit their capabilities so that they can accept the teachings and be transformed. Thus, the Buddha responds to capabilities. “He then teaches them, leading them to attain joy.” He helps them accept [the Dharma] joyfully. [When] they accept [the Dharma] with joy, they can naturally make earnest use of it.
So, “I always have this thought, ‘What can I use to help sentient beings…?”
I always have this thought, “What can I use to help sentient beings…?”: He always has this thought in His mind about which skillful means He can use to help those sentient beings attain realization and benefits. He always has this thought and contemplates this in the depths of His mind. He knows that the natures and desires of sentient beings are different, so according to their various capabilities, He devises various teachings to expound the Dharma, helping all those sentient beings attain supreme wisdom ands swiftly attain Buddhahood.
The Buddha always thinks, “How can I help sentient beings constantly give rise to joy, accept the Dharma and never depart from the Dharma? The Buddha thinks about this for the sake of sentient beings.
So, “He always has this thought.” The Buddha’s every thought is for sentient beings. He never forgets them. What methods should He use as skillful means to help those sentient beings attain realization and benefits”? What methods should He employ so that sentient beings can take the Dharma to heart and put their heart into the Dharma? How can they comprehend the great path and accept and make use of the Dharma to benefit from it? He had to find a way to help sentient beings accept, employ and benefit from the Dharma. “He always has this thought.” He always thinks in this way, always has this thought that is inseparable from sentient beings.
“[He] contemplates this in the depths of His mind, putting His heart into [this]. He never abandoned the thought of devising ways to teach and transform sentient beings. “He knows [that] the natures and desires of sentient beings are different.” In this way, He slowly analyzes [them], [coming to] understand sentient beings’ natures. [He knows] sentient beings’ natures and interests. “What is it that they really desire? What do I have to give them for them to joyfully cherish and accept it?” The Buddha put His heartfelt effort into [finding these methods]. “According to their various capabilities, He devises carious teachings to expound the Dharma”. At that times, the Buddha is always concerned for sentient beings. Depending on their capabilities, He uses certain teachings to help them to accept [the Dharma]. He repeatedly gives rise to these thoughts. [He hopes to] “help all these sentient beings attain supreme wisdom and swiftly attain Buddhahood. There are the Buddha’s hopes. He always hopes that these sentient beings can receive these teachings, and that form these teachings, they can grow their wisdom-lives. When they bring their wisdom-life to fruition, they will fully attain the Buddha-body. This is no easy task. Can we sentient beings come to comprehend the Buddha’s thoughts? The sutra passage continues with “enter supreme wisdom and swiftly attain Buddhahood”. This refers to “being able to enter the supreme wisdom of the Tathagata”.
Enter supreme wisdom and swiftly attain Buddhahood: This refers to being able to enter the supreme wisdom of the Tathagata. All Bodhisattvas start from forming initial aspirations and reach the ultimate and perfect wisdom. When they completely purify their ignorance, the Buddha-nature will manifest. When they actualize the Six Paramitas in all actions, they attain perfect wisdom. Being able to manifest the Dharmakaya is called being dignified by wisdom. After they awaken to the Buddha’s understanding and views, they will swiftly attain the perfect Sambhogakaya.
“Entering supreme wisdom” means that we must enter the Tathagata’s supreme wisdom. [The Tathagata] “opens and reveals” the Dharma [for us to] “realize and enter. [The Tathagata] opens and reveals [the Dharma] for sentient beings to be able to realize and enter. Where must we enter? [We must] enter the Buddha’s understanding and views. Entering the Buddha’s understanding and views.
This is the one great cause for which the Buddha comes to the world, to open and reveal. His understanding and views to sentient beings, [He] hopes that they can realize and enter them. Have we realized and entered them? The Buddha put in so much effort, never forgetting about sentient beings. How should He teach so that everyone can cherish the Dharma, accept, make use of and comprehend the Dharma? This is what the Buddha put His heart into. He hopes that everyone will take [the Dharma] to heart and realize the Buddha’s supreme wisdom. His only hope is to help sentient beings clearly understand [their] intrinsic Buddha-nature and what the Buddha awakened to. Everyone intrinsically possesses the ocean of Dharma-nature; we all possess this ocean of enlightened nature, but we have not yet experienced it. The Buddha hopes [that we will experience it]. So, “All Bodhisattvas start from forming initial aspirations”. The Buddha expounds the Dharma to help people comprehend it, form aspirations and “reach the ultimate and perfect wisdom”. [He] hopes that upon this path, after we form aspirations, we can advance forward step by step. Along the way, we must not stop, nor must we stray even slightly. Our direction must be precise upon “the great, direct Bodhi-path,” and we must diligently move forward step by step. He hopes that sentient beings “are able to enter the supreme wisdom of the Tathagata”. [He hopes that] beginning with the Bodhisattvas’ initial aspirations, we can comprehend the Tathagata’s wisdom. In order to awaken this Bodhisattva-mind, we must form great aspirations. Having formed great aspirations, we must go among people. We must continue on this path, be diligent and not become stuck until we reach the ultimate [wisdom]. We must perfect “actualizing the Six Pariamitas in all actions” On this path, we must eliminate all afflictions. As we server others, we must also eliminate afflictions. We must go among people, for “afflictions are Bodhi”. There are many afflictions among people. By going among people and into this world that is full of afflictions, we attain realizations and bring our wisdom-lives to fruition. “Afflictions are Bodhi” We must cultivate “the great, direct Bodhi-path” among people. During the process from forming aspirations to [attaining] the ultimate and perfect wisdom, we must completely abandon our ignorance and afflictions. In this way, we simultaneously cultivate blessings and wisdom. When we walk on the two feet [of blessings and wisdom] in this way, our Buddha-nature will appear. When we create blessings among people and cultivate our wisdom, we take steadfast steps with the two feet [of blessings and wisdom] without stop. We must put our hearts into this. We reside [in the space] between heaven and earth, in the human realm.
In the human realm, we must form great aspirations, Bodhisattva-aspirations, in this way. We must walk along the path inch by inch without any deviation. We must pave the path smooth and build it straight, making it a straight and smooth path; this is how we must walk on this path. During this journey, we must eliminate ignorance; we must clear away all ignorance. In this way, our Buddha-nature will manifest; when we actualize the Six Paramitas in all actions, we perfect our wisdom. What the Buddha hopes for the most is for us to be able to actualize [the teachings] and reach [the ultimate]. He also hopes that we can “manifest the Dharmakaya” It is intrinsic to everyone! Everyone possesses the nature of True Suchness. We must begin by earnestly forming aspirations and advance forward upon the path to ultimate wisdom, traveling step by step upon this direct Bodhi-path without deviating in our direction. Then, we will successfully reach [the ultimate]. Thus, being able to “manifest the Dharmakaya is called being dignified by wisdom”. When we reach this point, we are dignified by wisdom. This is “awakening to the Buddha’s understanding and views. They will swiftly attain” means that they can quickly attain the perfect Sambhogakaya. The Sambhogakaya will have gone through “the myriad practices of the Six Paramitas”. We accept the Dharma and go among people. This is manifesting our Sambhogakaya in the world in response to karmic conditions. We manifest our Sambhogakaya in the world to perfect the teachings we cultivate lifetime after lifetime; we must engrave them into our hearts. When we listen to the sutra, we must make connections. Looking back on the Chapter on Emerging from the Ground, countless Bodhisattvas emerged from the ground, arriving in this way at the Vulture Peak Assembly.
At that time, Maitreya Bodhisattva asked, “For them to become such great Bodhisattvas, when did they begin to engage in spiritual practice? Who helped these disciples succeed? Who is their master?” Sakyamuni Buddha responded, “These [Bodhisattvas] are all my disciples, and I am their master”. How could [those present] believe in this? Sakyamuni Buddha had attained Buddhahood and expounded the Dharma for less than 50 years; how could he have helped so many great Bodhisattvas attain fruition? Furthermore, they were truly great Bodhisattvas. The Buddha then brought up how long, long ago, in the distant past, He had gradually formed affinities with these Bodhisattvas. Maitreya and the others still did not believe Him, so they brought up “the young father and the old sons”.
Following that, in the Chapter on the Tathagata’s Lifespan, [the Buddha] then said that He is like the doctor-father. This father is a doctor. His children have been poisoned, so the father prescribes them medicine to take. Among the children, those who are not very ill take the medicine and recover. Those who have lost their original minds have doubts, so they are unwilling to take [the medicine]. The father is not willing to give up, so he thinks of other methods. In response to the children’s illness, He earnestly prescribes medicine for them one by one and tells them, “I have business in a faraway place; I am leaving to [attend to it]. You must take this medicine”. In this way he leaves and then uses skillful means by telling someone to go back and say, “Your father has passed away.” In truth, the father is still alive but he uses skillful means. This person arrives, saying, “Your father has passed away; he will never return again.” In this way, the children are finally able to realize and know to cherish the time when their father was present. [He] used these principles as an analogy for His presence in the world. When the Buddha was present, from His attainment of Buddhahood through over 40 years of expounding the Dharma, parts of the society rejected the Buddha-Dharma.
There were also some within the Sangha who did not know to cherish His presence in the world and the teachings He gave in person. They did not know to cherish, accept and make use of the Dharma while they were in the Sangha.
Sentient beings in that era were like this. So, the Buddha used these methods; He said that He would soon enter Parinirvana in hopes that all would clearly understand that life is impermanent. We must cherish life and seize the moments between each breath, this time when we are still breathing and alive. We must constantly cherish [our time] and quickly accept the Buddha-Dharma. We already know that the principles are true. We simply do not know to quickly make use of them. When the Buddha began [explaining this], He wished to explain to everyone that [although] principles are everlasting, if we do not put them into practice, we will not [have the teachings inside] us. We will remain unenlightened beings. The principles will exist forever, while we will remain as ordinary beings. We will still be the same stubborn, unenlightened beings with inverted views, full of greed, anger, ignorance, arrogance and doubt. We will still possess an ignorant consciousness and be unenlightened beings who do not know where we will be in the future. It is not that we have no way of understanding; it is just that we have not exerted effort. When it comes to “practice,” we have not truly put [the teachings] into practice. We may have knowledge of [the teachings], yet we are unwilling to practice [them]. So, the Buddha set an example through action and taught for us to know that dust-inked kalpas ago, He had already comprehended [all principles]; He had comprehended the great path and had begun to form the supreme aspiration. Upon forming this aspiration, He mindfully accepted the Dharma, delving deeply into the sutra treasury and [attaining] wisdom as vast as the ocean. His wisdom is clear and bright. So, lifetime after lifetime, He returns repeatedly to dedicate Himself to sentient beings and lead the people harmoniously, using the Dharma to teach and transform sentient beings. With His spirit and ideals, His affinities [with sentient beings] slowly deepened, and when the karmic conditions ripened, He manifested the attainment of Buddhahood. Thus, the world was replete in the Buddha-Dharma; it was replete with the Buddha, Dharma and Sangha. These became complete in this era. Over 2000 years ago, the Buddha, Dharma [and Sangha] were complete. They have extended all the way to the present. When it comes to the Buddha, Dharma and Sangha that have been passed down from the Buddha’s time to the present, we hope that in this era, we will reinforce them and continue to pass them down. This is extending [the Buddha’s] lifespan. When it comes to the Buddha’s lifespan, the principles of great awakening, we must continue to pass this down. So, we must be very mindful.
We must put our hearts into comprehending the Chapter on the Tathagata’s Lifespan. It speaks entirely about our nature, our true nature. We must earnestly seek to comprehend and awaken to this. The Chapter on the Tathagata’s Lifespan is very important. It is such an important [chapter]. Thus, we must often recall it and review it. This is just like the 16 princes, who, having listened to the sutra, would go back to it. They would contemplate and expound it again and listen to it again. The principle is the same. So, we must always be mindful!
(Source: Da Ai TV – Wisdom at Dawn program – Explanation by Master Chen-Yen)
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